The New Orleans Saints have begun mandatory minicamp, and it's the first sign the season isn't far away. The Arizona Cardinals make the trip to Caesars Superdome on Sept 7 in 87 days for the first game of the season. We continue our countdown to kickoff by highlighting Joe Horn.
The legendary Saints wide receiver donned the No. 87 for seven seasons. Horn joined the Saints at the turn of the century. He came over to New Orleans in Jim Haslett's first year as head coach. It's the same year the Saints won their first playoff game, and Horn was the leading receiver that season.
Joe Horn retired as arguably the best Saints WR of all time
Before there was Marques Colston or Michael Thomas, there was Joe Horn. As time passed, Horn has dropped down the Saints all-time rankings, but his contributions should not be forgotten.
It's important to note Horn left New Orleans after a year with Drew Brees, and Horn was past his prime by that point. The greatest era of passing in Saints history didn't feature Horn, but the numbers he put up in the era prior speak for itself.
Horn had 1340 receiving yards in his first year in New Orleans. That was a franchise record that stood for four years until Horn improved on his own record. It wasn't until Michael Thomas had 1405 receiving yards 18 years later that Horn was dethroned.
Horn was the first to achieve multiple feats. He was the first Saints receiver to surpass 1100 receiving yards and did it four times. He was the first Saint with 10 or more touchdowns, and he was the first player in franchise history to record 90 catches.
When Horn retired, he had the four highest single season receiving yard totals. He still owns three of the top-five. He also finished with the top-three in catches and touchdowns in a single season. Horn finished slightly behind Eric Martin in catches and yards all-time, but Horn also played two less seasons than Martin in a Saints uniform.
